拖延！ Delay！
【作者:取材自「路德名言集」 顾美芬译】剪下一方暖和--喻道小故事 2013.07.14
“He who neglects an opportunity will be neglected by the opportunity”, “In front opportunity has hair, but it is bald behind”. These are the writings exhort us to be prompt, Martin Luther once said.
Indeed, our God teaches this truth through nature. A farmer should sow his barley and oats near Easter. If he wants to put it off until Michaelmas , he waits too long. When the apples are ripe you should pick them. If you want to postpone it for a long time, they, of course, will be gone. Delay is a vice that is the opposite of promptness.
字汇
Exhort 劝勉。
Michaelmas 米迦勒节(9/29，在英国是每年四次的支付日之ㄧ)。
Vice 恶，坏习惯。
「忽视机会的人会被机会忽视」，「机会的前面有头发，后面是秃头」。马丁路德有一次说，这些都是劝勉我们的写作。
的确，神藉自然界教导我们这些真理。农夫应该在复活节前后种大麦和燕麦，如果拖延到米迦勒节，就等太久了。苹果熟了就要摘，如果拖了很长一段时间，当然就没有了。拖延是恶习，与即刻刚好相反。
思考与应用
1. 你曾有过抓不住机会的懊恼吗？
2. 新年新希望，有什么是你不再拖延的决心？
注：「路德名言集」（What Luther Says—An anthology，Compiled by Ewald M. Plass）
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